


Help Me, Help You

by WinterSky101



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon), Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: 5+1 Things, Blood and Injury, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Gen, Hurt Kaldur'ahm, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, Season/Series 01, Team Bonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-03
Updated: 2018-08-03
Packaged: 2019-06-21 06:41:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15551910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterSky101/pseuds/WinterSky101
Summary: The trick to getting Kaldur to look after himself, the Team had discovered, was to trick him into thinking he was looking after someone else.Or, five times someone tricked Kaldur into taking care of himself, and one time someone got him to take care of himself with no tricks at all.





	Help Me, Help You

_i. Artemis_

Artemis hadn't been on the Team for very long - and honestly, the thought of being on a  _team_  was still a weird one - but she had been a member for long enough to know the others' strengths and weaknesses. Conner was strong, but he didn't have all the powers that a normal Kryptonian had, and he had a tendency to act without thinking. M'gann had her psychic powers, but she was still learning how to use them, and she was debilitated by heat. Robin had his hacking skills and his acrobatics, but he didn't have any superpowers. Wally had his speed, but he was  _obnoxious_  (and also couldn't use his speed if he hadn't eaten enough or couldn't get traction on the floor).

And then there was Kaldur. Artemis could see why the others had made him their leader. He wasn't the fastest, or the strongest, or the smartest, but he was pretty fast and strong and smart. He was the best strategist of the Team, and his water-bearers could pack a major punch. He was even able to hold his own against  _Jade_ , which Artemis knew from experience to be impressive.

So none of that explained why he was doing so badly in their combat practice.

The Team had been split in half, with the current line-up being Robin, Artemis, and Kaldur against Wally, Conner, and M'gann. Kaldur was doing  _okay_ , but he wasn't doing as well as Artemis had expected him to. He was hanging back, not being as offensive as usual, and seemed to be having trouble shaking off blows that normally wouldn't faze him in the least. If it were anyone else, Artemis would be annoyed with them for being lazy, but with Kaldur… Well, him being lazy just didn't sound right.

Something seemed wrong, and if no one else on the Team was going to do anything about it, Artemis would.

"Uh, hey, Kaldur?" she called. "Are-"

The rest of the sentence was lost in a yelp as Robin tackled her to the ground. "What are you doing, you idiot?" she demanded, wriggling out from under him. "We're on the same team!"

"Robin-" Kaldur began, sounding exhausted.

"Sorry," Robin replied, not looking sorry at all. "I was aiming for Conner."

Conner was too far away for that to make any sense, but Kaldur just sighed and turned away. Artemis, on the other hand, wasn't about to let it drop.

"There's no way you were aiming for Conner," she hissed angrily. "Why did you do that?"

"Sorry," Robin repeated, sounding marginally more apologetic. "But you were gonna ask Kaldur if he was okay or if he needed a break or something, and I can't let you do that."

"Why not?" Artemis demanded. "Look at him! Something's clearly wrong-"

"Look, just trust me on this one," Robin replied. He looked over at Kaldur and frowned a little. "Actually, could you tell him  _you_  want a break?"

"What?" Artemis snapped. "I'm fine! I don't-"

"Trust me!" Robin repeated. "I'll explain later, but just do it. Say you're hungry or something."

Artemis huffed, but Robin seemed earnest, so she figured she should give him the benefit of the doubt. "Hey, Kaldur?" she called tentatively. "Could we maybe take a break? I didn't eat much for breakfast and I'm kinda hungry."

"Ooh!" Wally stopped abruptly, raising one hand in the air. "I'm hungry too!"

"You're always hungry," Robin countered. "But it is almost lunchtime, Kaldur."

Both Conner and M'gann stopped as well, looking over at Kaldur eagerly. Kaldur looked around the room and sighed. "Very well. We will take a break for lunch."

"Yes!" Wally cried, racing out of the room. M'gann and Conner followed, but Robin hung back until Kaldur left the room, and Artemis wasn't about to leave Robin's side until she got some answers.

"So?" she demanded when they left the training room and headed towards the kitchen. Kaldur, she noticed, went off towards the bedrooms instead, but Robin didn't seem concerned. "You said you'd explain later. Now is later."

Robin sighed. "Okay. So you've probably noticed that Kaldur is pretty private."

"Yeah?" Artemis put her hands on her hips. "What about it?"

"I'm getting there!" Robin protested. "Kaldur doesn't like to talk about himself very much. Part of that is that he doesn't like to admit it when something's wrong."

"Talking about Kaldur?" Wally asked, skidding to a stop next to them with a banana in hand. "Think he'll actually take care of whatever's wrong with his leg now that we're taking a break?"

"Something's wrong with his leg?" Artemis demanded. Now that she thought about it, Kaldur  _had_  been favoring one leg throughout all of training, but he hadn't said a thing.

Then again, if Robin's explanation was going where she thought it was…

"Seems like it," Robin said. "He's been limping a little since the mission yesterday. I don't think anyone saw him get hurt, but clearly something happened."

"But he said he was fine when we got back!" Artemis protested.

Robin and Wally shared an exasperated look. "Yeah, he does that."

"But why did you tackle me before?" Artemis asked Robin. "If something's wrong-"

"He won't admit it," Robin said, shaking his head. "But we've been working with Kaldur for long enough to figure out a way to get him to take care of himself."

"The trick is, you have to make him think he's taking care of someone else," Wally said. "If you had asked him if he needed a break, he would have said no. But if you say  _you_  need a break…"

"So he'll take care of us, but not himself?" Artemis asked. "That's dumb."

Robin shrugged. "Hey, it's what works."

"So, think he'll take care of his leg now?" Wally asked again.

"I hope so," Robin replied. "But what do we do if he tries to start training back up after lunch?"

"Can't we just tell him that we know something's wrong?" Artemis asked. "I mean, if he knows he's not hiding anything, will he stop trying?"

Robin and Wally shared a look. "I mean, you can  _try_ ," Robin said after a moment. "But he'll probably just tell you that nothing's wrong. Over and over again. He always does."

"So what  _will_  work, then?" Artemis demanded. "We need to figure something out."

Robin grinned. "Seems like we need to start planning Operation: Make Sure Kaldur Stops Training."

"A little wordy," Wally admonished.

Robin shrugged. "It works, doesn't it?"

"Operation: Stop Kaldur?"

"Sounds a little ominous."

"Operation-"

"Oh my god," Artemis groaned. "You two are the  _worst_. Can we just figure this out without coming up with a stupid name?"

Robin and Wally looked at each other.

"Operation: No More Training?" Wally suggested.

Well, Artemis reflected, if worst came to worst, she could just punch Wally in the face and break his nose. Kaldur would probably cancel training for that, and she would definitely enjoy it.

* * *

_ii. Dick_

"Oh!"

M'gann lost the last bit of altitude she had managed to cling to as she fell to the ground. The psychic link wavered a bit before solidifying again, then it spluttered out entirely and was gone.

Honestly, though, Dick couldn't blame M'gann for having trouble. The burning warehouse was uncomfortably hot for  _him_ , and he wasn't a Martian who was severely weakened by heat.

Nor was he an Atlantean who was severely weakened by heat, although if you asked Kaldur, he would probably claim he wasn't either.

"Miss Martian," Kaldur called. "Are you alright?"

"It's just too hot," M'gann panted. "I'm sorry, I…" She fell to her knees. Kaldur and Dick were the closest, but Kaldur still only barely managed to grab M'gann before she passed out.

"We need to get her out of here," Dick said.

"Agreed," Kaldur replied.

He looked almost as bad as M'gann, Dick noticed. He was sweating, and his skin looked sallow. Both he and M'gann had to get out of the warehouse as soon as possible.

Well, Dick figured, this was the perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

"I can't carry her," Dick said. "Aqualad, you'll have to do it."

Kaldur nodded and scooped M'gann up into his arms. He struggled with her weight a bit more than he normally would, and his steps didn't seem quite as sure as usual, but he made it out of the warehouse.

"Guys," Dick said into his comm, making sure it only went to Wally, Artemis, and Conner (which was child's play, honestly; they should probably invest in comms that were more difficult to mess with), "Miss M and Aqualad are compromised by the heat. Miss M's completely down, and Aqualad just took her out of the warehouse, so they should be okay now, but we need to make sure they don't come back in."

 _"We need to make sure Aqualad doesn't come back in, you mean,"_  Wally said.

Dick grinned. "Yeah, basically."

 _"Tell him he needs to protect Miss Martian,"_  Conner suggested.  _"She can't come back in here."_

"Good idea," Dick complimented. "Now we've just got to hope that Miss M doesn't tell him she doesn't need protecting or anything like that."

 _Guys?_  M'gann's psychic voice asked in their heads a moment later.  _Is the link back up?_

There was a chorus of yeses and yups.  _How are you doing, Miss M?_  Dick asked. Not through the link, he thought as hard as he could,  _Say you need protection, say you need protection, say you need protection._

 _I'm better,_  M'gann replied.  _But I'm still weak. I'm sorry._

 _Nothing to be sorry about,_  Artemis replied.  _Everyone has their weaknesses._

 _Aqualad,_  Dick thought.  _Can you stay outside with Miss M and keep an eye on her?_

 _Of course,_  Kaldur replied.  _The rest of you, do not forget the objective._

 _Wouldn't dream of it!_  Wally chirped.

They were all beginning to focus again when Dick felt a whisper along the edge of his mind, clearly separate from the psychic link.  _That should keep him out here._

He grinned.  _Thanks, M'gann._

They finished the mission without another hitch, Kaldur guiding them from outside through the psychic link. When they finally finished and went out to the bio-ship, Dick noticed with satisfaction that Kaldur looked much better than he had in the warehouse.

If Kaldur couldn't be trusted to take care of himself, and past experience proved that he couldn't, then Dick and the others would just have to take care of him instead.

* * *

_iii. Wally_

Being on stakeouts was, in Wally's opinion, the most boring part of being a superhero.

Especially - and he loved the guy, but he was just being honest - when he was partnered with Kaldur.

Kaldur was great. Wally had been working with him for years, and you couldn't ask for a better partner. He would always be there to watch your back, and he was loyal almost to a fault.

But he could also be a stickler for the rules (although only when he wanted to be), and that meant that he was  _really boring_  during stakeouts.

"What's the chance that the guy is even here in the first place?" Wally complained. "We've been staring at his office for  _hours_ , and we haven't seen  _anything_."

"It has only been an hour and seventeen minutes," Kaldur replied mildly. "And we do not know that he is here, but that is why the others are watching his place of residence and the home of his current paramour."

Wally made a face. "Just say girlfriend, dude. 'Paramour' sounds weird."

Kaldur's lips twitch up into the barest hint of a grin. "I apologize."

"Oh, glad  _you're_  having fun," Wally muttered.

"This may not be the most entertaining part of our job, but it is important," Kaldur replied, abruptly serious again. "And Batman has entrusted it to us, so we must do our best to do it well."

"I  _know_ ," Wally groaned. "I'm just bored."

"I am afraid you must figure out a way to entertain yourself here," Kaldur said. "We cannot leave our post."

"Ugh, fine," Wally grumbled.

Kaldur wasn't the type to fill silence with meaningless chatter, so the rooftop was silent unless Wally spoke first. Or, at least, it was, until Kaldur's stomach rumbled.

"Hungry?" Wally asked.

"I am fine," Kaldur replied. He seemed almost embarrassed.

"Want one of these?" Wally asked, holding out one of his protein bars. He always brought a stash of them with him to stakeouts. Considering how quickly his metabolism burned through calories, he normally ate them all.

"They do not agree with my physiology," Kaldur replied.

Wally winced, remembering the one time that Kaldur had tried one of Wally's protein bars and immediately got hit by food poisoning-like symptoms that lasted for nearly a day. "Right. Uh, wanna go get some food, then?"

"We cannot leave our post."

"Not even for food?"

"I am fine," Kaldur repeated. "I do not need food."

"Dude, I definitely heard your stomach."

"We have a job to do," Kaldur said. Wally didn't miss that he didn't deny that his stomach had rumbled. "We will not leave our post."

"It's not like anything is  _happening_ ," Wally grumbled. Sometimes, he really hated how difficult Kaldur could be. If he was hungry, he could go eat. Nothing was happening during their stakeout, and even if something  _did_  happen, Wally could go get him and bring them to the action in seconds.

But, Wally suddenly remembered, when Kaldur refused to take care of himself, he and Dick had a system. If Kaldur wouldn't get food for  _himself_ …

Wally unwrapped and ate a protein bar, shoving the others back into his bag while Kaldur wasn't looking. He still had six left, which would probably be enough for the rest of the stakeout, but Kaldur didn't need to know that.

He waited in silence for a few minutes, then made a show of digging around in his bag.

"Uh, Kaldur?"

"Yes, Wally?"

"I'm out of protein bars."

Kaldur looks over at him, frowning. "You are out of protein bars?"

"I didn't think we'd have to sit here all night!"

"It has been an hour and a half," Kaldur corrected. He sighed. "Do you need more food?"

"I can go get some," Wally suggested. "I'll be quick, I promise. And if anything happens, you can just comm me and I'll be here in half a second."

Kaldur's face was a little uncertain, but Wally just waited. If he said he was hungry, really hungry, there was no way Kaldur wasn't going to let him get food.

"Alright," Kaldur finally agreed. "But be quick."

Wally saluted and sped off. There was a small convenience store a few doors down, so he got into the civilian clothes he'd stashed in his bag and went inside.

There were a bunch of pre-made sandwiches inside. Wally grabbed two of the tuna fish ones for Kaldur, then four of the turkey and cheese ones for himself. He did have protein bars, but sandwiches were better. He grabbed two bags of chips, then went up to the counter.

The cashier raised an eyebrow. "You sure you want all this?"

"Yup," Wally replied, pulling out his wallet.

The cashier shrugged and began scanning the food. Wally paid and shoved the sandwiches and chips into his bag, then changed back into his costume and ran back up to the rooftop.

"Any change?" he asked as he sat down next to Kaldur.

"Nothing," Kaldur replied. "And I have contacted the others, and none of them have seen our target either."

"So this was useless," Wally groaned, opening up his bag. He tossed one of the sandwiches to Kaldur, who caught it with an expression of confusion.

"What is this?"

"I grabbed you some sandwiches," Wally replied. "Tuna. And don't even try to say Atlanteans don't eat fish, cause I'm not going to fall for that anymore."

Kaldur's lips twitched into a small smile. "I'm still shocked you fell for it at all."

"You have that serious face!" Wally protested. "How am I supposed to tell you're messing with me?" He nudged Kaldur's shoulder. "Eat."

"I do not-"

"Look, I already bought the sandwich," Wally replied. "Can't bring it back now. Just eat it."

Kaldur sighed, but he did unwrap the sandwich and take a bite. Wally put the other tuna sandwich in his lap, then grabbed one of his own turkey and cheese sandwiches, taking a big bite.

Nothing happened during the entire stakeout, but at least they weren't hungry through it.

* * *

_iv. M'gann_

"Oh, Kaldur! I didn't see you there!"

Kaldur turned around, offering M'gann a smile that looked a little strained. "I apologize for startling you, M'gann."

"It's fine," M'gann replied. "I was going to make some cookies. Do you want to help?"

Kaldur stood, still smiling the not-quite-right smile. "I have nothing else that I must do."

"Are you okay?" M'gann asked tentatively.

"I am well," Kaldur replied immediately. M'gann almost smacked herself in the forehead. Hel _lo_ , Megan! What did Robin  _always_  say about Kaldur? He could be bleeding out, and he'd still say that he was fine. Asking him wouldn't do any good.

For half a second, M'gann wondered if she should take a peek into Kaldur's mind, but she dismissed the thought just as quickly. It might help her figure out what was wrong, but she couldn't betray Kaldur's privacy like that. She'd have to find another way to figure out what was going on with him.

"Do you know where the others are?" M'gann asked as she started to get out the ingredients for chocolate chip cookies.

"I believe Conner is outside playing fetch with Wolf," Kaldur replied. "And the others went home."

There was a hint of jealousy in the last word, and for half a second Kaldur's expression turned almost bitter. M'gann allowed herself to feel smug in the safety of her own mind. It seemed she'd figured it out.

"I wish I could go home," she said. "I miss it."

"Are you homesick?" Kaldur asked, watching M'gann start to measure the dry ingredients.

"I am a lot," M'gann replied. It was the truth, and a bit of sympathy would probably make Kaldur more likely to go along with her ideas. "Home seems so far away."

"You could visit," Kaldur offered. "The Zeta tubes can take you to Mars, can't they?"

"I don't think so," M'gann replied. "My uncle J'onn and I didn't come through a Zeta tube. And I need to be here for the Team." She also had little desire to go back to a place where she would be persecuted for being a White Martian, but no one knew about  _that_.

"If you want a break, you can take one," Kaldur replied. "Being away from your home can be… difficult."

"Do you miss your home?" M'gann asked.

"Sometimes," Kaldur replied. There was something a bit faraway in his eyes. "Atlantis is a beautiful place."

"Mars too," M'gann replied. She looked at Kaldur. Talking about Mars always made her feel better when she was homesick, so maybe… "Will you tell me about Atlantis?"

Kaldur looked at her, a bit surprised. "You wish to know about Atlantis?"

"I'm curious," M'gann replied. "And I like learning about other people's homes. What's it like?"

"It is…" Kaldur let out a sigh. "It is beautiful. I am from a place called Shayeris, but I moved to Poseidonis when I was twelve and studied there. It is the capital, and it is like no other place I have ever seen."

"It sounds amazing," M'gann said as she started measuring ingredients for the cookies.

Kaldur stepped up to the counter next to her. "Do you need help?"

"Could you get the eggs out of the fridge?" M'gann asked. "I need two."

Kaldur did as she asked, carefully bringing two eggs over. "Tell me about Shayeris," M'gann requested as she cracked them into the bowl. "Is it a city?"

"It is," Kaldur replied. "It is a beautiful place. My mother and father live there."

"I'd love to see it," M'gann said. "And I'd love to meet your parents."

"Perhaps you can someday," Kaldur said. "Most humans cannot easily withstand the pressure at the bottom of the ocean, but I believe a Martian could."

"That would be fun!" M'gann said brightly, mixing the cookie dough. "And maybe you could visit Mars someday."

"Perhaps I could," Kaldur replied. "I have heard my king tell stories about visiting, and it sounds like a wonderful place."

"It is," M'gann replied, biting off the,  _As long as you're not a White Martian_. "And I have family back there. Twelve sisters and seventeen brothers."

Kaldur's eyebrows went up. "That is a very large family."

"It's pretty average for Mars, honestly," M'gann replied. "I have over three hundred cousins."

"That is a very,  _very_  large family."

M'gann laughed. "Are big families not common in Atlantis?"

"Not really," Kaldur replied. "Most families have one or two children. I have no siblings."

"Aren't you lonely?" M'gann asked, shaking a bit of flour out on her hands. "I'm lonely without my siblings."

"I have never known life with a sibling," Kaldur replied with a shrug. "I am not lonely without something I have never known." He looked at her hands, then asked slowly, "What are you doing?"

"Putting flour on my hands so the cookie dough doesn't stick to them," M'gann replied. "Here, you can try it."

Kaldur looked a little dubious as he held his hands out, but he allowed M'gann to pour a little bit of flour on them. "Brush it around until your hands are covered," she instructed him. "Then you can get a little handful of the dough and roll it into a ball. Then we put the balls on the cookie sheet, and then we put the cookie sheet in the oven and cook them!"

"Very well," Kaldur replied, tentatively taking a handful of cookie dough and rolling it between his palms.

Kaldur's cookies were a little sloppier than M'gann's, but they weren't bad for a first try, especially considering that the webbing between Kaldur's fingers made it more difficult for him to shape the dough. M'gann smiled at him when they scraped the last bits of dough off the sides of the bowl.

"There we go! Let's put these in the oven, then we can eat them!"

"Your cookies are always delicious," Kaldur complimented.

M'gann beamed. "Thanks!"

She kept an eye on Kaldur as they put the cookies in the oven, but she couldn't detect any of the moroseness that had been on his face before. She grinned smugly when she knew he couldn't see. Mission: Cheer Up Kaldur was accomplished.

And in twelve minutes, the cookies would be ready, and there was no way that even Kaldur could be sad while eating chocolate chip cookies.

* * *

_v. Conner_

"Okay," Conner said, ducking out from under Kaldur's arm and helping Kaldur sit down on the ground, propped up against a rock. "Uh. Are you okay?"

"I am fine," Kaldur replied, but even if he hadn't said it through gritted teeth, the rapidly-spreading red patch on the side of his ripped suit would have made it pretty clear he was lying. Conner knew how much blood a human could lose before they were in serious trouble, and while he wasn't sure if it was the same for Atlanteans, he had a feeling Kaldur was getting pretty close to that state.

"You're bleeding out," Conner said bluntly.

Kaldur leaned his head back against the rock. "We have to continue to the rendezvous spot."

"You can barely even walk!" Conner protested. "Kaldur-"

"Code names on a mission," Kaldur scolded absently.

" _Aqualad_ ," Conner grumbled. "We need to do something about your injury before we do anything else."

"It is not that serious," Kaldur protested. "And we need to get to the rendezvous and meet with the others."

"We need to stop the bleeding," Conner muttered to himself, ignoring Kaldur entirely. "So we need to put pressure on the wound. Uh…"

There were no bandages, so Conner pulled off his t-shirt, balled it up, and pressed it against Kaldur's bleeding side. Kaldur hissed in pain, but didn't flinch away.

"Okay," Conner said to himself. "Okay, now what?"

There was a burst of static in his ear from the earpiece he'd forgotten he was wearing. He jumped a little, but then realized that mixed in with the static were words.

_"…Superboy, we… ship, please report…"_

"Robin?" Conner demanded, recognizing the voice. "Robin, is that you?"

Kaldur looked up at Conner, his brow furrowed slightly. His earpiece was gone; it must have fallen out at some point during the fight.

 _"Superboy!"_  Robin replied.  _"Good, you're okay. Are you still with Aqualad?"_

"I am, but he's down," Conner replied. "We won't be able to get to the rendezvous."

"I am  _fine_ ," Kaldur hissed, but Conner ignored him.

 _"Okay,"_  Robin replied.  _"We're all at the rendezvous, but we can come pick you up. Miss M got knocked out, but Artemis is bringing her around. We'll get you in the bio-ship, okay?"_

"Thanks," Conner replied. "We'll be waiting."

"We can get to the rendezvous," Kaldur said, wincing a little as Conner pressed the shirt harder against his side. "We do not have to wait here."

"Aqualad-"

"I can manage it," Kaldur added. He sounded entirely serious, despite the fact that his face was grayer than Conner had ever seen it. His skin looked clammy, and Conner was pretty sure his pulse would be too fast if he checked it. His education at Cadmus had taught him exactly what shock looked like. If Kaldur was going into shock, which was less of a possibility and more of a certainty, it was likely some of his anxiousness and confusion was stemming from that. Which meant it wouldn't be easy for Conner to get through to him.

_Conner?_

Conner blinked, reaching one hand to his temple.  _M'gann?_

_Conner! Are you alright?_

_I'm fine_ , Conner replied.  _But Kaldur is hurt and won't stay still._

 _How badly?_  M'gann asked, sounding worried.

 _Bad,_  Conner replied.  _I think he's going into shock. But he still thinks he can get to the rendezvous._

_Have you tried Robin's method?_

_Robin's method?_

_Tell him that you can't get to the rendezvous,_  M'gann said.  _Kaldur is always more willing to help other people than he is to help himself. If he thinks you can't get there, he'll stop trying._

 _Worth a try,_ Conner said dubiously. He wasn't a very good actor, but…

"Look," he said. It took Kaldur a few moments to meet his eyes. "I can't get to the rendezvous."

Kaldur frowned. "What?"

"I got hurt," Conner replied, hoping Kaldur didn't ask for details. "I can't make it the rest of the way there."

"Where are you hurt?" Kaldur demanded, sounding worried. "Why did you not tell me?"

"I, uh-"

 _Tell him you hit your head,_  M'gann suggested.

"I hit my head."

"How bad is it?"

"Uh, bad enough that I can't get to the rendezvous."

"Do you need help?"

"I'm okay as long as I'm sitting down," Conner replied. He hoped it sounded believable, but even if it didn't, he didn't think Kaldur was in any shape to think too hard about it. "So we should just wait here for the others to pick us up. They're on their way now."

"Tell me if you require aid," Kaldur said.

"I will," Conner lied. "But for now, can we just sit here?"

"Very well," Kaldur replied.

 _We'll be at your location in a few minutes,_  M'gann said.  _Are you two okay?_

 _We're good,_  Conner replied.  _But be quick._

Kaldur slipped into unconsciousness right before the bio-ship arrived, but Robin and Artemis were able to get him set up with a saline drip and some bandages as M'gann piloted the ship back to the Cave as quickly as she could. Conner slumped into his seat on the bridge, wiping at his bloody hands with a towel.

"You did it," M'gann said.

"Hmm?"

"You got Kaldur to wait for us," M'gann elaborated.

"I tried Robin's thing, like you said to," Conner said. "It worked."

"Always does," Robin chirped, alerting M'gann and Conner to his presence. "Kaldur's as stable as we're going to be able to get him right now. How long until we get to the Cave, M'gann?"

"Not long," M'gann replied. "The ship is going as fast as it can."

"Good," Robin replied. He patted Conner's shoulder. "Nice going, Conner."

Conner nodded, but he didn't think he'd be able to fully relax until Kaldur was okay again.

* * *

_+i. Roy_

The knock on the door was less of a knock and more of a genteel tap. There was only one person Roy knew who knocked like that. "Door's unlocked," he yelled as he tugged his gloves into place.

"Is that wise?" Kaldur replied as he stepped inside. "This is not the safest of neighborhoods."

"I'm goddamn Red Arrow," Roy replied, turning around. "I think I can- Holy  _shit_ , what happened to you?"

Kaldur blinked. "What do you mean?"

"You look horrible," Roy said bluntly. "Did someone throw you through a wall or something?"

Kaldur didn't say anything, but he looked a little embarrassed. Roy gaped at him. "Kal, I was  _kidding_."

"The Team just returned from a mission," Kaldur explained.

"Then why the hell did you come here instead of going home?"

"You and I made plans," Kaldur replied, looking a little confused.

"Protip, Kal," Roy said. "If you're, well…" He gestured vaguely at Kaldur. "If you're like this, you can just cancel."

"I did not need to cancel."

"How long was your mission?"

Kaldur wouldn't meet Roy's eyes. "Four days."

"And when was the last time you slept?"

Kaldur didn't answer.

"So four days ago, then?"

"We had plans," Kaldur said stubbornly. "You are already all ready for our patrol, so-"

"Plans change," Roy said. "Sit down."

"Pardon?"

"Sit your ass down on that couch, Kaldur."

"Roy-"

Roy pulled one of his foam arrows out of his quiver. "You've seen me trap people with these," he said, holding it out. "And I swear to God, Kaldur, if you don't sit your ass down on that couch  _right now_ , I will trap you in so much goddamn foam you won't be able to move a  _muscle_."

Kaldur sat.

"Finally," Roy muttered. "Okay, are you hurt anywhere?"

"I am-"

"Never mind, that was a dumb question," Roy interrupted. "You're not going to tell me either way."

"Roy-"

Roy went into his kitchen, ignoring Kaldur entirely. He poured a glass of water and grabbed a couple of ibuprofen. "Here," he said, handing the glass and pills over.

"I do not require these," Kaldur said, taking the water but refusing the pills. "I am fine, Roy. A bit tired-"

Roy scoffed. "Yeah, a  _bit_."

"-And a bit bruised, but not badly injured," Kaldur finished, ignoring Roy entirely. "I am able to go on patrol-"

"Oh  _hell_  no," Roy interrupted. "You're going to keep your ass on that couch, and I'm going to get changed into comfier clothes, and then we're gonna watch some dumb movie or something. I don't have to patrol tonight."

"You need not change your plans for me," Kaldur protested.

"Kaldur, shut the hell up," Roy replied. "I'm gonna go change. If you've moved an  _inch_  when I get back, I'll shoot you with a foam arrow."

"You've already made that threat tonight," Kaldur replied absently.

"Yeah, well, I mean it," Roy said, getting up and going to his bedroom to change. "Stupid fish boy," he muttered to himself as he pulled off his suit and changed into a t-shirt and sweatpants.

It only took a few minutes for him to get changed, but by the time he got back out to his living room, Kaldur was asleep, leaning uncomfortably on the arm of the couch. "Stupid fish boy," Roy repeated fondly, carefully adjusting Kaldur's limbs into a more comfortable sleeping position. He draped a blanket over him, rolled his eyes, and sat cross-legged on the floor to watch some TV.

It was hard to get Kaldur to take care of himself, but as Roy looked up at Kaldur sleeping peacefully on his couch, his face calm and young as it so rarely was, he knew it was worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> My writing tumblr is [here](http://winterskywrites.tumblr.com/), if you're interested.


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